Via pins hopes on China Telecom

Taipei, Taiwan - Taiwanese chip firm Via said it had signed a deal to sell phone chips and chips for Netbook computers with China Telecom.

That, according to the Taipei Times, caused its share price to surge on the Taiwanese bourse, reaching the limit set on stock there.

Vicky Tsai, a representative of Via, said that China is one of the fastest growing netbook markets. She said a memorandum of understanding (MOU) Via signed with China Telecom last Friday would include chips for low cost computers.

Via has been loss making for three years, and last week removed 60 percent of its capital to firm up its financial structure.

Via's netbook chip, the "Nano" competes with Intel's "Atom" chip, but the US company is being aggressive in mainland China. Earlier today, IDC released market share figures for Intel, AMD and Via.

The more important part of the deal for Via, reading between the lines, is the supply of chips for 3G handsets to the giant China Telecom. According to DRAM Exchange, Netbook machines will rise to as many as four million units this year.